Ruairi is a nationally sought-after conductor, pianist and vocal coach whose approach to music – and to singing especially – is to empower and uplift people into discovering within themselves and others a deep source of joy and connection.

Originally coming from a prestigious academic background in Economics, Ruairi established a career as a professional musician aged 21, and quickly developed a national reputation within the choral music world. Having rapidly gained apprenticeships with several of the UK’s leading choral conductors – including David Lawrence, Dan Ludford-Thomas and Paul McGrath – Ruairi became sought-after for his ability to work with a huge range of different groups, from children’s choirs to choral societies, gospel choirs to business organisations.

Originally based in the Midlands, he has held lasting positions with some of the country’s most prestigious choral and music organisations such as Ex Cathedra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, National Youth Choir of Great Britain, National Children’s Choir of Great Britain and Glyndebourne Youth Opera.

Working with groups and people is Ruairi’s greatest passion. Far from sticking to conventional methods of choral conducting, Ruairi developed techniques and approaches which enabled him to work with people of hugely diverse backgrounds and in different settings. He has had enormous success in working with people and organisations who believe they “cannot sing”, and of creating ways of allowing people to access their voice – and their bodies – joyfully.

From 2012-2013, Ruairi worked alongside Gareth Malone on the BBC’s BAFTA award-winning television series The Choir. In this role, he was engaged to work within various business organisations as a vocal coach and pianist, working with people who had never sung before and creating choirs which ultimately performed on national television. With one of these organisations – Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service – his work was so successful that he was appointed permanent Music Director to the Fire Service. With this choir he went on to perform around the country and internationally, including at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

As a Vocal Tutor in Ex Cathedra’s nationally award-winning Education Team, Ruairi works up and down the country working with young people in schools, hospitals and choirs. In 2016 he went to Bangkok, Thailand, to lead massed choirs and worked with over 1000 children in a week.

Between 2011-2016 Ruairi was appointed Associate Artist at the Warwick Arts Centre, where he founded and directed an unprecedented International Music Festival, culminating in an annual event called Warwick Fused. This event ultimately featured over 250 musicians from around the world performing on stage together. This success of this festival led to its official coronation as the Lord Mayor of Coventry’s annual Charity Event.

As a student at Schumacher College between 2017-18, Ruairi has already used his music extensively with people from around the world who have come to visit. Working on several Short Courses with Jenny MacKewn and Satish Kumar, Ruairi has created choirs and performances with people who thought they could never sing, and who have reported that doing so had been one of the highlights of their experience here.

Christine Cairns has had an extraordinary musical career which has seen her sing under the baton of world-famous conductors as well as running a community choir.  She launched the charity Music for Autism to host concerts for young adults with autism, giving them the opportunity to respond to music in any way they wish; a true reminder, Christine says, that the joy of live music can have the most profound effect on everyone.

Christine began her musical life as a viola player with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and went on to study viola and singing at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.  However her passion for singing eventually took over and the combination of a masterclass with international soprano Elizabeth Schwarzkopf and an audition with conductor André Previn launched her international career.

Christine has sung all over the world with some of the most respected orchestras and conductors including the Vienna, Berlin and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras as well as the Royal Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra.  She has also worked with renowned conductors such as André Previn, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Simon Rattle and also with her husband John Lubbock.

In 1995 their younger son Alexander was diagnosed with severe autism. This contributed to Christine's decision to devote her life to her family and she discovered a passion for teaching that has driven her ever since.

She began teaching at the Conservatoire, a music charity in London and has loved nurturing young singers, helping them to blossom and mature. She has taught at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and has a private practice at home in Oxfordshire. Christine regularly gives concerts for people with dementia, directs choral workshops and runs her own community choir in Shillingford, Oxfordshire.

Christine started the charity Music for Autism which has provided concerts for more than 100,000 children all over the country. These interactive concerts provide high quality music for children and young adults with autism in which they are encouraged to sing along, dance, conduct and respond to the music in any way they can; a true reminder, Christine says, that the joy of live music can have the most profound effect on everyone.